Rising energy costs, a public awareness to become more energy independent and environmentally friendly, and the reduction in the costs associated with solar panels has resulted in both consumers and commercial entities to consider retrofitting existing buildings with solar panels or to design new buildings that include solar panels. For instance, non-commercial and commercial owners and developers are increasingly considering alternative sources of energy to offset continued price increases of energy. As such, solar energy has received increased attention as an alternative renewable, non-polluting energy source to produce electricity as a substitute to other non-renewable energy resources.
One of the more popular means to generate energy for a building is solar power. Solar panels use a photovoltaic system that converts light energy into electricity. Some building structures have solar panels installed on their rooftops to obtain electricity generated from the sun. These solar panels can be installed on many types of roof systems as “stand alone” solar systems. Most solar panels are mechanically attached (e.g., bolts, screws, nails, rivets, etc.) to the top surface of a roof system. Furthermore, such solar panel systems typically require separate support structures that are typically bolted together to form an array of larger solar panels. The mounting arrays for such solar panels can require structural upgrades to the building due to added weight of the support structures and the solar panels. Additionally, these traditional mechanical arrangements for securing the solar panels to the roofing system require the forming of holes in the roof system surface and/or other modifications to the surface of the roof system that can impair the integrity of the roof surface. For instance, multiple penetrations of the roof membrane when installing the multiple solar panels can compromise the water-tightness of the roof system. Consequently, the water resistant or repellant properties of the roof system can be impaired when installing solar panels on a roof system. In addition to the problems associated with mechanical connectors, the mechanical connectors generally make the removal or repair of one or more solar panels on the roofing system time consuming, difficult and costly, and can also result in additional damage to the roof system. Over time, the solar panels on a roof system become damaged and/or require service. As such, the mechanical connectors must be removed so as to remove the solar panel. The removal of these mechanical connectors can result in damage to the roof system, thereby compromising the water resistant or repellant properties of the roof system. Furthermore, these mechanical connectors can become rusted and corroded overtime, thus becoming difficult to remove, thereby a) increasing the time and cost associated with the repair of the solar panel and/or b) increasing the incidence of damage to the solar panel, solar panel mounting arrangement and/or roofing system.
One common arrangement to connect solar panels to a roofing system without the need of traditional mechanical fasteners is the use of ballast blocks that are laid on a racking system for the solar panels. However, the use of ballast blocks adds significant weight to a roofing system, thus the use of ballast blocks cannot always be used on building structures when such building structures cannot support such added weight. In addition, the use of ballast blocks cannot be used on sloped roof surfaces, thus limiting the use of such arrangements to flat roofing systems.
Another solar panel attachment arrangement is disclosed in United States Patent Publication No. 2008/0245399 and 2008/0245404. A hook and loop connector (e.g., Velcro connector) is used to secure solar panels to a roof surface. Although such a connection arrangement at first appearance may seem appealing, there are many questions concerning whether such a connection arrangement can properly and successfully secure solar roofing panels to a roof surface overtime, especially in wind prone regions or on a sloped roof system.
In view of the current state of solar technology and roof systems, there is a continued need for a solar panel connector that easily, conveniently, and cost effectively connects solar panels to a roof system without damaging the roof system and/or the solar panels, which can be used on many types of roof systems without the need to modify or structurally enhance the roof system, and which can be used on sloped and non-sloped roof systems.